MEN'S BASKETBALL: USJ, Emmanuel Selected Atop 2021-22 GNAC Preseason Poll
The defending GNAC champion Blue Jays from USJ and the Saints from Emmanuel topped their respective divisions in the annual preseason coaches' poll/
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
WINTHROP, Mass. – As the Great Northeast Athletic Conference shifts to divisional play with the 2021-22 season, Emmanuel College and the University of Saint Joseph (CT) have been selected atop this year's GNAC Men's Basketball Preseason Poll, as voted upon by the league's 13 head coaches.
EC and USJ both received 10 first-place votes to lead the way in the North and South Division, respectively, while the Blue Jays enter 2021-22 as the reigning GNAC champion, claiming its first-ever league title and NCAA appearance in 2020 just prior to the pandemic.
The year prior, USJ made a magical run to the 2019 GNAC Championship game as the No. 7 seed under head coach Jim Calhoun, winning twice on the road before falling in an 81-77 thriller at Albertus Magnus College. The Blue Jays men enter their third season in program history ranked No. 9 in the D3hoops.com Top-25 national poll.
Longtime GNAC powerhouse Albertus, which has the fifth-best winning percentage (.836) the last 10 seasons across all NCAA Divisions, took the second spot in the South Division poll with 79 points and a pair of first-place votes as head coach Mitch Oliver enters his 15th season with the Falcons.
Following the two Connecticut rivals in the South were Johnson & Wales University (70 points), Lasell University (49), Regis College (38), Dean College (31), and newest core member Elms College (17), as Dean and Elms both enter their first years with the GNAC on the hardwood.
As for Emmanuel, the Saints underwent a explosive resurgence prior to COVID, going 15-7 in GNAC play in a two-year span under former head coach Danny Lawson after going just 2-14 back in 2017-18. New head coach Littell White, who spent the last three years as an assistant coach for Emmanuel, now takes over the talented program,
Saint Joseph's College of Maine was second in the North Division side of the poll with two first- place votes and 60 points, followed by Colby-Sawyer College with 46 points, Anna Maria College with 41 points, Norwich University with 32 points, and Rivier University with 21 points.
As for the new GNAC structure, teams will play both home and away against each divisional opponent, and one game against each non-divisional opponent.
For the GNAC Tournament, scheduled for February 22, 24 and 26, teams will be seeded 1-4 by division and cross over in the tournament quarterfinals.
2021-22 GNAC Men's Basketball Preseason Poll
NORTH
1. Emmanuel (10) - 73
2. Saint Joseph's Maine (2) - 60
3. Colby-Sawyer - 46
4. Anna Maria (1) - 41
5. Norwich - 32
6. Rivier - 21
SOUTH
1. Saint Joseph CT (10) - 88
2. Albertus Magnus (2) - 79
3. JWU (1) - 62
4. Lasell - 49
5. Regis - 38
6. Dean - 31
7. Elms - 17
The Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 14 member institutions and over 3,500 student-athletes across the New England region. Founded in 1995, the GNAC annually sponsors and administers 22 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunity and community involvement in an effort to enhance the student-athlete experience.
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